Indian Express; Tuesday, August 09, 2011.
Chandigarh : For seeking fee under the RTI Act after 30 days of application and delaying information inordinately, the Punjab State Information Commission penalised the Ferozepur Central Jail deputy superintendent and asked the prison authorities to ensure that the amount is deducted from his salary.
The decision was taken while deciding the case of Chaman Lal Goyal of Chandigarh, who had filed an RTI application in February this year in the Central Jail, seeking documents about a district jail superintendent, who was suspended, then reinstated and later made to retire compulsorily.
However, Goyal was told that the record was very old and would be provided as and when traced. He filed a complaint with the commission on April 15. When notice of hearing was issued, the respondent asked the complainant to deposit Rs 1,342 for 671 pages of information despite the fact that more than two months had passed since the original application was filed.
Goyal said the respondent had deliberately not provided information and he had suffered mental harassment and financial loss in attending hearings of the commission. In the first hearing held on May 31, the jail authorities were directed to provide information free of cost.
However, during the next hearing on July 15, neither the public information officer (PIO) nor his representative appeared, and information was also not supplied to the complainant. Even after the panel issued a show-cause notice, the respondent did not take any action.
Finally during Monday’s hearing, information was provided after a lapse of 80 days.
“This is a fit case for award of compensation. I, therefore, order that compensation of Rs 2,000 be paid to the complainant by public authority on account of mental harassment and financial loss suffered. It is clarified that the amount is to be paid by Ferozepur Central Jail and not by the PIO,” State Information Commissioner Kulbir Singh said.
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